The Woodlands (Houston), Texas, May 16, 2014 - Applications for the 2014 Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship are open to culinary students globally, announced Benchmark Hospitality International® and The James Beard Foundation, located in New York City. The scholarship fund was established by Benchmark Hospitality in 2009 to celebrate the memory and culinary legacy of the company's first vice president of food & beverage, Bob Zappatelli. Applications for the scholarship will remain open through June 1, 2014.

"Bob would have loved that part of his remarkable legacy is to enhance educational opportunities for the next generation of culinary professionals," said Ellen Sinclair, senior vice president for Benchmark Hospitality International. "To be able to make a difference with this scholarship, by helping defray rising tuition costs for students of the culinary arts, is completely in keeping with Bob's unique educational gifts. It is the best tribute to him."

The Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship Application

Culinary students globally can apply online through the James Beard Foundation website for consideration for the Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship educational resources. The scholarship application can be accessed online at:

For further information on the Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship, the application process, or additional scholarships available through the James Beard Foundation, students are encouraged to visit www.JamesBeard.org

The Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship Fund

The Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship, established in 2009, is presented annually in partnership with The James Beard Foundation, the definitive culinary arts organization in the United States dedicated to showcasing American chefs' talents. The scholarship celebrates the passion for the food & beverage profession of the late Bob Zappatelli, Benchmark Hospitality International's first vice president of food & beverage, and serves as a living memorial to his unforgettable enthusiasm in the advancement of the culinary arts. For many years, Bob Zappatelli worked closely with The James Beard Foundation, hosting the immensely popular Benchmark Holiday Dinner each December at the James Beard House in New York City.

The James Beard Foundation provides a Scholarship Program as one of its educational pillars, to which the Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship Fund has been added. The Fund is included in the Foundation's catalogue of nearly 80 annual culinary scholarships the organization administers and makes available each spring for students domestically and globally. Each spring, generous scholarships are granted via the James Beard Foundation to students at many schools of note, including the Culinary Institute of America, Johnson & Wales, and Le Cordon Bleu International. The James Beard Foundation distributes resources through the Scholarship Management Services division of Scholarship America, a respected nonprofit organization that has helped award scholarships to over one million students.

Contributing to the Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship Fund

Details include:

Donations can be made to The James Beard Foundation, with "Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship" indicated on the Memo line.

Donations can be sent to: The James Beard Foundation, Attn: Marilyn Platzer, CFO, 167 West 12th Street, New York, NY 10011

Credit card donations can also be made by calling (212) 675-4984. Request "Special Giving."

The Foundation is a 501c-3 not-for-profit charitable organization and will follow up with acknowledgment of donations to all donors for their records.

A scholarship will be awarded annually from the principal accumulated in the Bob Zappatelli Culinary Arts Scholarship Fund.

About the James Beard Foundation

http://www.jamesbeard.org/Founded in 1986, the James Beard Foundation is dedicated to celebrating, nurturing, and preserving America's diverse culinary heritage and future. A cookbook author and teacher with an encyclopedic knowledge about food, James Beard, who died in 1985, was a champion of American cuisine. He helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts, instilling in them the value of wholesome, healthful and delicious food. Today the Beard Foundation continues in the same spirit by administering a number of diverse programs that include educational initiatives, food industry awards, scholarships for culinary students, publications, chef advocacy training, and thought-leader convening. The Foundation also maintains the historic James Beard House in New York City's Greenwich Village as a "performance space" for visiting chefs. In September of 2012, the Foundation launched the Diplomatic Culinary Partnership with the U.S. Department of State's Office of Protocol and helped create the American Chef Corps as a way to champion American chefs abroad, promote American food products and foster an interest in American culinary culture and history through international programs and initiatives. For more information, please visit www.jamesbeard.org. Find insights on food at the James Beard Foundation's blog Delights & Prejudices. Join the James Beard Foundation on Facebook. Follow the James Beard Foundation on Twitter and Instagram.

About Benchmark Hospitality International

Benchmark Hospitality International® is a recognized global leader in the management and marketing of resorts, hotels and conference centers. The company's two distinctive portfolios of properties, Benchmark Resorts & Hotels® and Personal Luxury Resorts & Hotels®, represent the finest in guest-dedicated hospitality in unique destinations across the United States, in the Caribbean and Japan. As a founding member of the International Association of Conference Centers, Benchmark Conference Centers® maintain the highest standards for certification in meeting excellence. Benchmark Hospitality was launched in 1980 as an independent company and today operates worldwide from offices in The Woodlands (Houston), Texas, and regional offices in New Jersey, Washington State, Japan and Chile. For additional company information visit www.benchmarkresortsandhotels.com/development. To become a fan on Facebook, visit www.facebook.com/BenchmarkResortsandHotels, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BenchmarkHotels.